Former Bellator Lightweight Champion Patricky Pitbull has signed a deal with Rizin and is booking a battle in Japan’s seasons on July 27th.
Pitbull, who represented Bellator at Lysine’s lightweight tournament in 2019, is currently taking his first walk into the ring as a proper Lysine fighter when faced with Shontamura.
The Brazilian knocked out Tatsuya Kawaziri and Luis Gustavo at the Grand Prix before losing to Tofik Musayev in the final. He returned to Japan in 2023 to knock out current lightweight champion Roberto Satoshi.
Nomura won a technical decision over Gustavo in his Lysine debut this March, bringing his overall record to 9-2 with four knockouts.
Rizin.4 will feature title defenses of bantamweight title holders Naoki Inoue and Super Atomweight Queen Seika Izawa respectively, fighting against Ryuya Fukuda and Yu Jin Shin, respectively.
Razabari Shaiduraev, who recently claimed featherweight gold in a knockout by Clever Koek, is also expected to be part of the card against the challenger, which has not yet been decided.
Koike will also be in the lineup in a rematch with Asakusa Mikuru. They first met in the ring in June 2021 when Koiki suffocated a Japanese star with a triangular chalk. Asakusa recently returned TOT, who won a column in TKO over former champion Suzuki Chihiro.
The lineup also features Masanori Kanehara vs. Yes, Karshiga Dotbeck vs. Kyoto Kyoto, and Koda Suda vs. Noel.